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Frugal Garden Tips For the Gardener on a Budget

July 19, 2011 By gzgarden Leave a Comment

With the price of produce going higher and higher these days, a lot of people are planting gardens. However, if you’re not careful, a garden can also cost more money than you might expect. You can avoid this, though, if you adhere to the following frugal garden tips. They will save you money without compromising the quality of your garden.

WAYS TO SAVE

First, plant from seeds rather than starts. Although this takes some patience, the savings are well worth it. You can get dozens of plants for less than a single pack of starts. This is one of those frugal garden tips that people rarely follow, though, because they don’t want to wait for their plants to come up. So if you do decide to buy seedlings, purchase smaller ones. They cost less than larger plants, and adjust easier when they are transplanted. Also, you can turn one plant into many by taking cuttings and collecting seeds.

But be sure that any plant you collect seeds from is open pollinated. Otherwise, it will not grow plants that are true to the original.

Another way to save is to work with friends and neighbors. You can trade your extra seeds with them, and swap any cuttings you might have. If you grow too much of something, make a deal with a neighbor for some of their excess crop. Since plants are much cheaper when bought in bulk, split an order with a friend. You may even find yourself swapping frugal garden tips! Everyone has some neat little bit of advice to help you save money.

Finally, use what you have and do not let anything go to waste. When you are raking up your leaves or cleaning your garden, save the rubbish instead of throwing it away. Eventually, it will become great compost.

Every time you empty a container, think about how it might be used in your garden. You may be able to plant seeds in it or use it to cover seedlings. It may even provide a good barrier for keeping pests away. Even old newspapers can help your garden by keeping weeds down. In short, do not toss anything into the garbage before thinking about it in terms of frugal garden tips. You may find that you actually need to buy less things than you thought.

Victoria Rosendahl has been getting dirt under her nails in the garden since she was 10 at summer camp. For more frugal gardening tips, sign up for The Frugal Gardener, a free monthly ezine, at http://www.myfrugalgardener.com

Tips for caring for your greenhouse plants including protecting plants in winter and looking after tomato plants. Award winning garden expert Steve Brookes shares great fun and informative gardening tips.

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Gardening: 5 Fundamental Gardening Tips Every Gardener Must Know

July 15, 2011 By gzgarden Leave a Comment

Article by Len Q

What is it about a beautiful garden that can quiet or stir a fire in one’s soul? Many people can’t explain it, but whatever the reason, a well tended garden is something to behold. It’s a truly fantastic hobby. It gives you time to contemplate life. And it’ll even give you an outlet for whatever ill that binds you.

Now that you’re on your way, here are 5 fundamental gardening tips that you should know by heart. Commit them to memory. Just how successful you are at gardening will greatly depend on how much you will be able to apply these principles. You may even consider these as the cardinal rules of gardening, for you can’t get by without them.

1. Moisture is vital for a plant’s good health. Water helps to transport needed nutrients all throughout the plant’s system. It also lends a hand to regulate and control the plant’s temperature, which, as you will discover later on is also an important factor to ensure the plant’s good health.

2. Plants don’t require air per se, but they do require specific gases that are part of the air. Most people think or believe that plants are wholly dependent on oxygen, just like other living things. But they’re not. Plants produce more oxygen than they actually need. Amazingly, plants are the enabler of life on Earth for they supply as much as two-thirds of the world’s oxygen.

Carbon dioxide is another gas needed by plants. As every good gardener must know, this gas is also essential for a plant’s growth and development. Oftentimes, it becomes more necessary in enclosed spaces.

3. Plants don’t need soil per se, but they do need particular nutrients that the soil they grow on should be loaded with. Plants won’t thrive in just any kind of soil. Always keep that in mind. To guarantee the most favorable growth and development of all plants, the soil on which they will be planted on should be rich with calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), nitrogen (N), potassium (K), sulfur (S) and phosphorous (P).

4. Plants are more sensitive to temperature than humans and animals. As earlier mentioned, the right kind of temperature is essential for a plant’s good health. Too hot or too cold a temperature will severely limit a plant’s growth and development. It’ll also result in poor produce production for farmers.

The wrong temperature will likewise take effect on the plant’s resiliency against its environment and surroundings. This includes how well the plant will be able to fight against infection and disease.

5. Plants are more dependent on light than any other living thing or creature on Earth. “Light” refers to the amount of sunshine that a plant receives. This sunlight is necessary for photosynthesis, a fundamental process needed for most plants to survive. It provides the plant with food and gives off oxygen as a by-product. Plants should receive a sufficient, if not ideal, quantity of sunlight every day.

These are only 5 fundamentals that every aspiring gardener should know. There are more, to be sure. But this is a fine start. Applying each principal devoutly will surely result in a garden worth its while. Have fun! You’ve chosen a spiritually satisfying and uplifting hobby that will probably make you a happier, if not calmer, person.

Len Q. is a master blade sharpener and an adventurer who strives to protect the natural world. If you would like to find out aboutâ–ª Knife Sharpening: How to Sharpen Knives, Maintain and Store Themâ–ª Sharpening Other Edges(e.g. Lawn Mower Blades, Chain Saws, Gardening Tools, Axes)Find it here at http://www.MakeKnivesSharp.com.

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Do you Want To Be a Gardener? Follow These Instructions!

July 12, 2011 By gzgarden Leave a Comment

Article by Bob Carols

Anybody can garden. Even people who think they have no talent for growing can learn how to care for plants as they are raised. As time goes on you will learn how to grow a bunch of different types of plants both edible and non edible-you can even grow trees! It is the assumption that growing a garden is easy that causes most new gardeners to fail. Eventually gardening will feel very simple but when you are first learning there is a lot to take in. Planting and watering are only two parts of growing a successful garden. Here are some helpful hints that will help increase your chances of growing a great garden.

If you plan on growing different types of plants, put together a schedule and follow it. Input the number of times your plants need to be watered. Map out a schedule for adding nutrients to the soils of your different plants. Use a calendar to keep track of everything so that, to keep up with your gardening schedule, you only need to check your calendar each morning to find out what needs to be done that day. You could even schedule weedings! This mapping and scheduling will help ensure that your plants grow to be healthy and thriving. Keeping a written schedule will do wonders for keeping you on track when you are a brand new gardener.

Bell peppers are a fantastic item to add to your garden. Bell peppers are easy to grow because they don’t have to be shielded from direct sunlight and they can grow both in the ground and in container gardening receptacles. You won’t have to worry about them if you forget to water them for a while. Bell peppers originated in dry parts of the world so they actually need to have drier soil than other types of plants. The sheer variety of bell pepper “types” is another reason that these fruits are so popular among home vegetable growers. New gardeners enjoy growing bell peppers because they grow and ripen quickly so it is easy to feel like you are actually accomplishing something when you grow them. Bell peppers are really easy to grow and take care of: plant them in nutrient rich soil, give them lots of direct light and water them every once in a while; you’ll have more bell peppers than you know what to do with!

Believe it or not, you do not always have to buy seeds for your garden. This is especially true if you want to grow fruits or vegetables. If you want to grow your own fruits or vegetables all you will need are a few pieces of the fruits or vegetables that you want to grow. Most fruits and vegetables contain seeds within them that you can plant to grow more of that same fruit or vegetable. This is a great way to fill a garden with your favorite foods and avoid a trip to the garden supply store. Gardening is often viewed as something that is very complex. The truth is that anybody can be a gardener. Don’t let the gardening books, magazines and television shows intimidate you. The truth is that, with enough patience and hard work, anybody can learn how to grow beautiful gardens. Even if you haven’t ever had good luck with planting and gardening before you could learn how to be a champion gardener over the course of just a few planting seasons. Keep at it! You’ll get to where you wan to go!

I like to write for many niches including Internet Marketing, Lifestyle, Health and Fitness and Beauty. You can find further information at Lifecell

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Online Gardening Tips for that Newbie Gardener

July 6, 2011 By gzgarden Leave a Comment

There are numerous sites that speak about online gardening tips that anyone can use to guide them to how to make and maintain the health of the gardens. These tips are still useful even for the tiniest garden like a window box or just a collection of pots on one side of the house. Newbies in gardening will have plenty of knowledge from these online gardening sites which provide all of the useful information .

It is best for the apprentice gardener to go through the online gardening tips as these are the very best sites to learn how to create a garden and the way to maintain the health of these plants. With just a couple of hours or even just less after work each week, and in many cases just playing in the dirt on weekends, caring for flowers and plants contained in the garden should be quite quick and simple, anyone, including YOU can do it. The sites should include online gardening classes which virtual students can just view and learn from to get the appropriate techniques in gardening.

Online gardening experts should address topics like easy methods to look after plants and flowers easily, or easy ways to organizing garden beds, how to mix the colors of flowers for a fantastic looking garden, vegetable gardening and look for topics which can give tips to find the best gardening tools for flowers, trees, and plant care.

Just as soon as the plant beds are set in place and the growth of plants are starting to get noticeable, make sure to go back to the sites and gather all of the pertinent information to generate the garden healthier and stronger. Tips on plant care will not be enough and there can be a desire to decorate the garden, these online sites also give great tips on how to go about this and they’ll also direct the user to the sites on where these accessories are generally bought.

There are several gardening ideas in these sites which one can share with friends. Use sites which come up with the best tips and advices on how to take care of plants and flowers.

Gardening classes – Online Gardening Expert blog is for beginners who want to do gardening as hobby. we provide tools, Online Gardening Tips, techniques and also useful methods for successful gardening. The basic gardening classed provided by us are useful to everyone who is interested in spreading the green around the world.

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A Gift Fit for a Gardener!

July 6, 2011 By gzgarden Leave a Comment

Article by Stephanie Foster

Giving gifts by interest isn’t always as easy as it sounds. So often the person has just about everything they want in that category, and so more stuff in that area is hard to find. They either have a better one or don’t want it most of the time.

Fortunately, sometimes you can get around that, especially for gardeners. You just have to figure it out.

The obvious gift for a gardener is a plant. The right plant depends on what type of gardening they enjoy.

Some strongly prefer roses, for example. If you want to give the gift of a rose bush to a rose lover, you will want to pick very carefully. Look at the varieties the person is growing right now. If there’s a strong preference for a particular type or color, that is something you will want to keep in mind. Maybe you can find a somewhat unusual rose bush for them that would go well in the garden.

Bonsai would be another option, rather than giving something meant to be planted outside. There are many beautiful varieties of bonsai out there, from trees to bushes to flowering plants.

Bonsai are often kept indoors, and certainly aren’t meant to be planted in the ground. That goes against the very definition of bonsai. So as a way to bring just a bit of the garden indoors in an elegant way, bonsai may be perfect.

When giving plants, paying attention to what type of garden is being grown is key. Succulents or cacti for someone who loves to grow them, bulbs for the flower gardener and so forth.

Of course, tools and gardening books may be given as well. The challenge is in knowing what is needed.

For books, if you can spy on their shelves you can figure out what types of gardening books they already have. No point in buying one they already own or not on a topic they enjoy, after all. Similarly, you’ll want to check out their tool selection before trying to buy gardening tools.

If you want your gift to really stand out, think about a bench that would look nice in the garden. The best material and design will depend on the type of garden and what else is in there. Many people love wooden benches, even fairly simple ones, but others do prefer a classic looking concrete bench.

Your favorite gardener may not be the easiest person to shop for sometimes, so give yourself enough shopping time to allow inspiration to strike. You never know when the idea for the perfect gift may appear.

Stephanie Foster runs gift ideas for gardeners.

Getting the kids in the garden is a great way to not only spend quality time with them, but also to teach them to value in being able to grow your own food and flowers!
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Great Gardener Gift Ideas

July 6, 2011 By gzgarden Leave a Comment

Article by Ron King

Getting a gift for a gardener can be easy. Whether they are a novice or an expert, you’ll find the holidays are the ideal time to give them gifts they will enjoy. By the time spring rolls around, they’ll have had plenty of time to decide how and where to use the gift you’ve given them.

You won’t have to go far to find the perfect gift. You probably have a gardeners’ catalog in your mailbox, a garden supply store nearby, and access to the Internet. There are many websites for wonderful selections.

Practical Gifts Are Great

Your local hardware store or garden supply should have a good selection of practical gifts. For the gardening beginner, gifts such as a shovel or trowel, garden hose or other digging and planting tools are ideal. Perhaps your gardener would like to attract butterflies and hummingbirds. There are certain flowers and plants that will draw them to a garden, and you can probably get them at your local garden supply. Not too sure about buying plants? How about a gift certificate to a garden supply store?

Gifts By The Basket Full

Another great gift present is a basket full of good “stuff” for the gardener. You can purchase one already assembled, or find a basket you like and fill it with some of the many items you will find in a garden shop. A basket with just essentials is a great choice for the beginner. It could include gloves, poison oak/ivy medication, flower seeds, plant food, a rain gauge, a Farmers Almanac, and special hand cream.

Books Make Perfect Gifts

Gardening books can be a treasured gift for the gardener on your list. Any bookstore will carry books covering a variety of gardening topics. Pick among specialty garden books, such as wildflower gardens, vegetable gardens, or drought-tolerant gardens. Buy them a book on the subject of perennials and annuals. Which flowers are best suited to their climate? How do you select plants that grow best in their type of soil? These and countless many more questions are answered in the many books available on gardening. You’ll find that some of the larger bookstores have whole sections devoted to gardening.

The Garden Stone: An Enduring Gift

A garden stone is another ideal gift for gardeners. Garden stones can be found in unusual shapes, or inscribed with famous quotations or poems. Kits are available to make garden stones with a child’s handprint and name added to it. That’s the making of wonderful memories for the child and for the gardener. You can also buy a garden stone and personalize it by putting your favorite gardener’s name, or the year the garden was established. Personalization can turn a simple gift into something unique.

On the more practical side, there are hundreds of gifts to choose from. Hose carts and attractive boxes for storing garden hoses out of sight are easy to find. Water sprinklers and fertilizer sprinklers are also good gifts. You can find whimsical water sprinklers, like one in the shape of a John Deere Tractor.

Unique Gifts

Some gifts add whimsy and fun to a garden. They are easy to find, and make perfect gifts, whatever your gardener’s skill level. Gazing balls are available in all sizes and colors, and add a creative dimension to the garden. Holders for the gazing balls come in dozens of various shapes, sizes and materials, too.

Among the most fashionable gifts for gardeners are wind spinners and flags. You can find wind spinners in a variety of colors, such as the patriotic red, white, and blue spinner, or the rainbow spinner. Garden flags are a popular gift because they can be changed to coordinate with the seasons, or more frequently just to create a new look in the garden.

Exotic and Unusual Gifts

Searching for something a little more unusual? Your gardener might love an exotic plant, such as the amaryllis exotica, a gift of unusual Iris bulbs, or a sago palm. How about an Italian herb garden, or a Shitake mushroom log?

Sculptures of animals, gnomes or angels of have regained popularity after many years of being out of favor, and they make great garden gifts. Birdbaths and bird feeders attract birds, a source of joy for most gardeners. You’ll also find wonderful hummingbird feeders that will keep these beautiful birds coming all rear round.

Whatever your gardener’s tastes are, you’ll have no trouble finding them the perfect gift..

For seasonal gifts, see Gifts For Gardeners. For more info click on Gardener Gifts. For landscaping ideas visit, Gardening Gifts.

Copyright 2007 Ron King. This article may be reprinted if the resource box is left intact and the links live.

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